My Girls
by twilighter1017
Summary: Marriage is simple- two people vow to love, honor, and trust each other for life and then make good on that vow. Only it isn't. Marriage is hell, especially when your husband is cheating on you. It certainly doesn't help when the guy who left you years ago shows up on your doorstep begging for your forgiveness. AH
1. Marriage

Marriage is simple- two people vow to love, honor, and trust each other for life and then make good on that vow.

Only it isn't.

Marriage is hell.

* * *

"Bella…Bella are you there?"

"Yeah. I'm here. I just don't believe it."

"Well, believe it because I saw her with my own eyes. I saw her leaving your house." Angela said to me through the phone.

I can't believe this.

He wouldn't cheat on me. He loves me. He wouldn't hurt me like that.

"Angie, I gotta go. Why don't you find someone else's husband to lie on?" I replied coldly.

"Bella, I'm not lying. I'm just looking out for-" was the last thing I heard as I hung up the phone.

Why would she say something like that? Jacob loves me. That's why he was there for me when _he_ left. That's why he waited for me to come back from college. That's why he married me and we had the twins together.

A part of me wanted to believe her because she has never lied to me before, but the bigger part didn't. And honestly, the bigger part was just plain pissed off.

_I can't believe Ang would spin some crap like that! I mean, who does she think she is? _I thought as I slammed my car door shut and walked up to the entrance to the daycare.

"Hello, Mrs. Black. How are you today?" the receptionist said as I approached the counter.

"I'm fine, how are you?" I replied not really wanting an answer.

"Well, I've been having this problem with…" she started to answer before I zoned out. I was still dumbfounded that Angela would accuse Jake of something like that. She was my bestie, numero uno, my chica. There was no way she would lie to me. ..and yet she had to be, because there's no way this is true.

"Mommy, what's wong?" Alison said breaking me out of my thoughts as she tugged on the bottom of my shirt. I had to smile like I did every time she talked. Her lisp was just adorable.

Allie and Jazz were my pride and joy. At three years old they were dangerously good at getting what they wanted. All they needed was a smile and a tilt of their heads and their chocolate brown eyes could stop anyone in their tracks. Being the devilish pair they were they could make your day a walk in the park a living nightmare, depending on their mood.

Identical down to their birthmarks, it was hard to tell them apart. The only difference between the two was that Allie was bossier and had a temper while Jaspen was cool, calm, and collected(most of the time). While Jazz would be chill in her booster seat with a juice box, Allie would be screaming her head off until she got ice cream.

"Mommy!" she whined.

"It's nothing Allie. I was just thinking about some things." I said with a smile.

She smiled back and grabbed my hand leading me out of the door. Jaspen grabbed my other hand as we walked to the car. I buckled them into their car seats and was about to start the car when my phone rang. I looked at the caller id to find that it was Angela yet again. I pressed ignore and threw it on the floor in front of the passenger seat.

"How was your day girls?" I asked as I pulled out of the parking lot.

...

I decided to take the kids to the park. Figured that they would ware themselves out and I could get a chance to think.

Angela was my best friend. She has been since we were in second grade. We graduated high school and went to the University of Washington together, me for culinary arts and her for photography. We stayed in Seattle where I opened my restaurant while she started working for a studio. Our friendship was strong through it all. We were even in each other's weddings.

Jake and I go even farther back. We made mud pies together while our dads watched football. In other words, we grew up together. We slowly progressed from childhood friends to high school sweet hearts to husband and wife.

But as close as Jake and I were, or even Angie and I, there was one person who knew me better than anyone. In the short time it took him to get to know me he learned everything I hadn't told anyone and everything I had.

He and I had known each other since 8th grade when he and his sister Alice moved to Forks from Chicago. I can still remember the day we met like it was yesterday.

* * *

"_Class we have a new student," Mrs. Wellbaum said as she clapped her hands together. "Please give your new classmate Edward a warm Forks welcome."_

"_Hi Edward," the class rang out in a monotone voice._

_He waved and smiled. _

_He was gorgeous._

_His teeth were so white it almost hurt to look at them. His bronze hair looked like he had just rolled out of bed and unlike every other guy in the room he had absolutely no acne. He stood with his head high as though he expected the world to stop for him if he asked. He probably didn't understand the concept of not getting what he wanted. In essence, he looked like a complete jerk._

_He was Apollo on earth._

"_Would anyone like to volunteer to help Edward get settled?"_

_Every girl's hand but mine shot up immediately. She looked around the room as if picking the right person would make or break Edward's first day. Her eyes suddenly rested on me._

"_Bella! How about you?" she said as all the other girls groaned._

_I was almost speechless. Almost._

"_Um…sure I guess."_

_She smiled her annoying everything-is-a-fun-lesson teacher smile. "Great! Edward, you can take the empty seat next to Bella and she'll help you through the day."_

_He wasn't paying attention to me until he sat in the desk to my right. He turned to me and flashed his dazzling smile and stretched out his hand._

"_Edward."_

_I shook his hand._

"_Bella."_

_Him the self-centered asshole and me the geek spaz._

_This could be the start of something wonderful._

* * *

And it was.

After that first day we got to know each other and gradually became best friends over the next few weeks. We were eventually inseparable and, needless to say, that didn't set very well with Jake. He was always jealous of how close we were no matter how much he was included. He always complained saying that Edward was a spoiled brat and I couldn't deny it considering it was true. With a dad who worked in the ER who had investments and bank accounts all over the world, why wouldn't he be? But even so, I always stood up for him because, as spoiled as he was he didn't act like it. Jake was too jealous to see how down to earth Edward was.

A loud burst of laughter brought me back to the present.

As I scanned the park I saw the twins on the swings, Jazz going higher and higher while Allie had stopped, talking to a man nearby.

"Allie!" I yelled. She looked over at me and back at the stranger. He glanced at me before quickly looking away. He had on sunglasses, a hat, and an Irish jacket looking suspiscious. Just as I approached he retreated in the other direction with his back to us. I didn't take my eyes off his back until he rounded the corner. He looked familiar but I couldn't put a name to him. It was bugging the hell out of me.

I rushed over to Allie and kneeled down to her eye level.

"What have I told you about talking to strangers?"

"He thaid he knew you mommy." Her expression told me she honestly didn't know she'd done anything wrong.

"You need to remember not to talk to anyone you don't know. Kay sweetie?" I picked her up off the swing. "Promise me."

"I promith."

"Good. Now we need to go. Come on Jazz."

We got to the restaurant a little over an hour before opening.

...

Let me make something clear right now. Allie and Jazz were my babies, I loved them more than anything else. But _Bella Italia_ was my _baby_, my second love.

Walking through the door I didn't stop until I got to my office. The girls went to their corner and got out their coloring books and crayons. As they settled themselves into their purple beanbags I closed the door and went to find Tori. Victoria "Tori" Greene was my main assistant and Head Chef. When I wasn't there she was in charge and knew how to keep everything running smoothly. She was the only other person I knew who could keep our smart-ass waiters in check and deal with irate customers calmly. She was me if I had fiery red hair.

When I found her she was going through the night's specials. The bar was covered with past menus and the cooks' suggestion cards. The memo pad in front of her was covered in scribbles with multiple scratch-outs. Apparently she was having a hard time deciding.

"Having trouble?" I asked as I approached. She looked up at me and smiled.

"Finally! I've been waiting for you all day. Kitchen prep starts in 10 minutes and we still don't have specials decided on."

"Well, what do we have right now?" I picked up the memo pad and scanned the options.

"I've narrowed it down to five choices. Pan seared tilapia with special sauce, cheese and mushroom ravioli, or chicken alfredo are the three I'm leaning towards," she said as she pointed them out on the list.

"Didn't we have the ravioli last week?" I asked.

"Yes, but-"

"And how did that go?"

"We had a few complaints but overall it was well received," she said as she folded her hands in her lap. "I think-" she began before I put my hand up in a "stop" motion. I bit my lip in concentration. It only took a moment to choose.

"Do the ravioli. Take out the mushroom and make it three-cheese. Make the second special a shrimp alfredo with a thicker sauce. And…" I stopped to think for a second more. "… make a Ratatouille."

"Brilliant!" She said before she ran off to the kitchen. I could hear her yelling out orders to the prep staff as I walked back to my office shaking my head. That girl thought everything I said deserved its own book. Can't say I'm not flattered.

As soon as I opened the door I heard Allie and Jazz arguing.

"I tol you. Ith mine!" Allie yelled.

"No Allie. It was in my box!" Jazz replied as she waved a bright green crayon over her head.

They were arguing over a crayon. I really wish my problems were that simple.

"Girls!" I yelled as I walked over to them. "What's the problem?"

"Jath took my gween cwayon!" Allie screamed, jumping up and down.

"Jaspen," I said, kneeling down to her level, "Did you take Allie's crayon?"

"No!" She crossed her arms and plopped down in her bean bag.

"YETH THEE DID MOMMY!"

I got back up and stood there for a minute trying to figure out what to do. Allie was starting to cry as I walked over to my desk. Lucky for me, I had just bought a few extra sets of crayons for them. I reached into my drawer where I kept some of their stuff. Allie's face lit up when I pulled out another bright green crayon, identical to the one they had just been arguing over. She was cheesing her toothy grin as I handed it to her.

"Why don't we go to uncle Em's and you can color there?"

"Okay," Jazz said as Allie just shook her head in agreement.

I packed all their crayons and coloring books in their book bags and we headed out.

On the way out the door, James, my dessert chef, stopped to sneak me a piece of cake each for both of the girls, Emmett and Rosalie. Armed with four pieces of chocolate fudge cake, crayons, coloring books, and the twins, I ventured outside.

**A/N: Thank you for reading my story whether or not you read this A/N. I want to thank anyone who is reading my other story and I am so sorry that I have to put it on hold but I felt that this story was going in a much better direction. I admire those of you who start a story and the rest just come to you but sadly I am not one of those people. I will eventually finish Sideways but for now this is a healthy distraction. Hope you enjoy this one. **


	2. Brother Bear

The rain was pouring as I pulled up to my brother's house.

Lights where on in almost every room, and I could see Em and Rose through the front room doing...well, let's just say they were getting frisky. I slammed down on my horn making a prolonged loud beeping noise which immediately caught their attention.

The girls unbuckled themselves while I got their book bags out. Rose opened the door still out of breath before we even made it to the porch.

"Hey girls!" she said.

"ROSE!" Allie and Jazz yelled at the same time, running up to give her a hug.

Rose picked them both up and carried them inside. She was just setting them down as Emmett bounded into the room picking them both up in one sweep, spinning them around. He positioned them like footballs in each arm and turned to me.

"What brings my favorite lil sis here?" He said in his booming voice.

"I'm your only sis, Emmy Bear," I replied.

He grinned at me as he set the twins down. He ran over and enveloped me in one of his Squeeze-the-life-out-of-you-so-you-can't-breathe hugs.

"I haven't seen you in forever, Bells!" He yelled in my ear.

"We were at her house Wednesday, Emmett. That was two days ago," Rosalie said with a sarcastic tone. She sat on the couch as Emmett put me down.

"Two days? That's it? It seemed like a lot longer." His facial expression was skeptical for a moment until he turned his attention back to the twins and cheesed. "Who wants to go color!"

Allie and Jazz began jumping up and down, squealing with excitement. Emmett picked them both up like footballs again and ran to the basement. I could hear them screaming all the way there.

FYI- My brother is the biggest kid you will ever meet. He is the only 6 foot (almost 7) tall person who routinely spent four hours every Wednesday at the toy store. He had a heart of gold like a teddy bear (hence the reason I call him Emmy Bear) and muscles like he was on steroids.

The strangest thing about me and my brother is that looking at us, you might not notice right away that we were even related. He was the blue eyed giant while I was petite with chocolate brown eyes. Our relation was only visible when you looked closer and saw that we had the same facial structure and the same curly brown hair.

Emmett considered himself the best big brother in the world, and I couldn't argue with that. He was always there when I needed him, and I never had to worry about any jerks when he was around. He never approved of any guy I was close to at first because he claimed none of them were good enough for me.

* * *

"_Emmy Bear, I'd like you to meet Edward."_

_Emmett was stuffing his face with bagels as we approached him. He looked up tentatively and swallowed his mouthful._

"_Hello, Emmett, my name is Edward Anthony Masen Cullen" Edward said as he formally extended his hand towards Emmett. Emmett looked at it for a moment before he busted out laughing._

"_Wow Bells. This one's a keeper," he got out between guffaws._

_The look on Edward's face was priceless. It was a mixture of what-did-I-do and what-the-hell-is-wrong-with-this-guy. He stood there for a moment with his hand still extended. Emmett suddenly stopped laughing and put on a serious look. He stared Edward in the eyes and stood up so that he was hovering over him._

"_You'd better be good to my sister. I can bench press twice your ass, so keep that in mind. Got it?"_

_Edward still hadn't put his hand down. He put it up a little higher._

"_Got it," he said as he stared my brother back in the eyes._

_Emmett suddenly broke out into a smile and patted him on the back a little too hard._

"_Good"_

* * *

I could still hear the twins screaming downstairs as I was brought back to the present.

I sat down on the couch next to Rose and sighed loudly.

"What's wrong Bella? Is everything okay?" Rosalie looked at me as though she were worried.

"It's nothing. Just…" I began to nervously rub my thighs.

"Tell me," Rose said.

"I'm going fu-" I caught myself. It had taken me so long after the twins were born to rid myself of my potty mouth. "I'm going freaking crazy!" I said instead.

"Did something happen?" Rose replied, seemingly oblivious to my slip.

"I was talking to Angela today when I was going to pick up the twins from daycare."

"Okay…" she edged.

"She started saying how she'd seen Jessica leaving my house yesterday."

"What?"

"Yeah, she claims she was coming by to drop something off to me and when she got to my street she saw Jessica getting in her car and driving away. When I suggested that she could have been there to drop something off for me as well, she said that she looked frizzy like she had just been 'working out' that Jake was standing in the door with no shirt on waving goodbye." I slowly inhaled to control my erratic breathing.

Rose was quiet for a moment before she spoke. She seemed to be taking it all in stride.

"Maybe she was imagining it," she suggested.

"I really don't know, but I did go off on her for lying to me. There's no way he would cheat on me. Not after all we've been through."

"I know it's not something you want to consider but you have to lay all your cards out on the table and see them all at once. I'm not saying he is cheating, but you can't dismiss her claim because you don't want to believe it. You need to think really hard about it before you drop it or jump to conclusions." Rose was looking at me with the I-don't-want-to-see-you-hurt look.

Rose gave great advice and I valued her opinion highly. But I just can't - I won't believe that Jake is cheating on me.

* * *

**A/N: Thanks again for reading. i want to warn you before i post the next chapter that the next few chapters will be starting with memories Bella has. It won't be directly stated which is why i'm saying it now. I hope you're enjoying the story so far. Comment to let me know what you think. **

**P.S.: Thanks to Melodramatic Destiny, ramsha05, alex1998twilight, harleymaria, and nataliexxann for being the first people to favorite/alert My Girls.**


	3. Confessions

"_Happy Birthday Bella!"_

"_Thanks Eric," I said as I took my gift from him and put it on the table stacked high with my other presents. Personally, I thought that it was absolutely ridiculous for me to be having a birthday party like this when I was turning 18._

_There were pink and green balloons everywhere. Confetti from the plastic poppers Alice had bought was strewn all over the floor. Streamers hung in every nook, cranny, and corner of the room. A giant HAPPY 18__TH__ BIRTHDAY BELLA banner was strung over the large door of the Cullen's massive basement. Crappy party music was blaring from the speakers and everyone wore cardboard HAPPY BIRTHDAY hats._

_Alice had sprung this party on me last minute saying I "needed to celebrate being legal" and all that crap. I knew she just wanted an excuse for a party. So she had invited all 160 people of our class and forced me to wear a tight dress with a pink BIRTHDAY GIRL crown and boa._

_Here I was in the middle of all this chaos that was my birthday. All I had wanted was a small dinner with my family and CLOSE friends. Instead I was surrounded by people I didn't particularly like with Jake grinding against me constantly trying to get me to go back out with him. The only person I wanted to talk to was avoiding me at every turn._

_I looked to the couch where he was sitting, Jessica Stanley nagging at him. He was obviously trying to tune him out so I decided to help him make an escape. I strolled over casually and sat on his side opposite Jessica. She shot me the evil eye before continuing to talk at him. I leaned over and whispered in his ear._

"_Your hair looks amazing tonight, Edward," I whispered trying to look seductive to Jess so she would leave. She got the message, immediately jumping up and huffing into the kitchen to get a drink. Edward was not oblivious to the whole exchange and clearly didn't like it. He got up and walked away._

_He had been ignoring me all night but the cold shoulder was starting to get old so I followed him. He walked outside and I expected him to stop on the porch. He didn't so I continued to follow him down the path from his house into the woods. The path ended at the creek. As soon as he stopped he turned around with a ferocity in his eyes that made me want to tremble. He focused all of his attention on me._

"_What do you want from me Bella?"_

"_I was just saying that I liked your hair," I stammered. My dress suddenly felt three sizes too small and it was freezing cold._

"_You like my hair? That's it? Because you've been clinging to me all night." He was pissed._

"_What the hell is that supposed to mean?" I was starting to get really offended at his attitude._

"_It means you've been up my ass since you walked through that door with that tight ass dress on. I mean really, who the fuck are you trying to impress?" he yelled, throwing his arms in the air._

"_I'm not trying to impress anybody!" I yelled back. Now I'm pissed._

"_The hell you're not! You've been giving me that look all night."_

_I leaned my head back and laughed to the heavens. He actually thought all this was for him? I looked back in his direction._

"_All this," I gestured up and down my body, "is not for you." I laughed again._

"_Bullshit." His anger was subsiding and he took a few steps towards me._

"_What?" I said oblivious to what he was talking about._

"_That's bullshit and you know it." He was only a step away now. I could feel the warm air coming out of his nose, smell the noir cologne he always wore._

"_No it's not. I don't get dressed up for men, and I sure as hell don't get dressed up for you," I snapped._

"_Prove it." His lips were suddenly on mine. I mind was telling me to protest but my lips and hands wouldn't listen. _

_My palms ran down his chest and his hands rested on my hips and pulled me closer until our bodies were mashed together. I could feel every breath of his and every beat of his heart we were so close. My hands moved to the back of his head as I grabbed his hair. I pulled hard which only made him groan softly on my lips. His hands ran up and down my back as the kiss deepened. The chilly September air couldn't touch us as we were in our only little heated bubble._

_The rush of the stream was rhythmic and in tune to our sporadic breathing as we finally came up for air. We never let go of each other as our breathing slowed and our hearts calmed to a steady beat. After a minute or two he finally spoke._

"_Now tell me it isn't bullshit." He looked down at me, brushing the hair out of my face. He was looking at me with a gaze so deep it was like he was staring into my soul._

_I was suddenly extremely self-conscious._

_I pushed myself away from him and began to back up. I didn't stop backing away until I felt the muddy shore of the river. I turned my back to face him so he couldn't see my expression._

"_Say it's not bullshit." I could hear and feel him closing the distance again._

"_I want to hear it out loud," he whispered into my ear._

_I didn't respond and instead just stood there as he breathed down on my shoulder. I turned my head away from his breath on my shoulder and stared into the empty forest._

"_That's what I thought." He seemed content with himself._

_Goose bumps had popped up all over my arms and legs the second I pulled away from Edward but I just starting to feel them. I instinctively began rubbing my arms with my hands for friction. A moment later I felt him drape his jacket over my shoulders. His hands rested on my shoulders a moment before he spun me around to face him. I turned my head to avoid looking at him._

"_Bella," he said. I was still silent._

"_Bella look at me." I watched the stream's current carrying one lonely flower petal along with it._

"_Bella," he grabbed my chin and turned my head to face him. "Look at me."_

"_What Edward?" I responded indignantly._

"_What happens now?" His tone was so soft it scared me. This wasn't something I was used to at all._

_I scoffed aloud and pushed him off of me._

"_You don't get to do this."_

"_What are you talking about?" He questioned. How nice of him to play dumb._

"_Don't play stupid. We've been best friends for almost 4 years and for the last 3 I've done nothing but try to get you to notice me for more than just that. Hell, I've done everything but kiss you. You've just been to focused on other girls to notice. But now… now that you finally notice, you all of a sudden want to take things further? No. It's not your call anymore." I brushed past him and began walking back to the house. Surely they were missing the birthday girl by now right?_

"_Bells, it's nothing like that-"_

"_I'm not taking your shit anymore," I yelled over my shoulder._

"_Bella!"_

"_I'm nobody's puppet, Edward. Especially not yours."_

"_ISABELLA MARIE SWAN! I have been in love with you since the moment I walked through Mrs. Wellbaum's classroom." I froze dead in my tracks._

_That had caught me completely off guard. I mean, how the hell was I supposed to respond?_

"_Since the second I saw you sitting in your chair drawing in that notebook before you saw me. Since we first made eye contact. Since you first said hi to me and smiled your irresistible smile at me." I was still frozen with what I'm sure was a dumbfounded expression. He began slowly walking towards me again, though this time obviously with a purpose. "I have been in love with you since that very first day we met and ever since I have been trying my hardest to get the balls to tell you."_

_My mind was racing and yet I was speechless._

"_I've finally grown a pair. Bella, I love you." The silence that followed was deafening._

_I had imagined this scene hundreds, maybe thousands of times since we met but I never thought it would actually happen. Especially like this._

_I still had no idea what to do, so I did the only thing I could think of at the moment. _

_I said, "I love you too, Edward," and I kissed him even more intensely then we had been kissing before._

* * *

The girls stayed with Emmett and Rosalie when I left to go back to the restaurant. When I got there the dinner rush was just beginning so it was getting pretty packed. Tori met me five steps past the door.

"Bella, we have a problem." Just what I needed.

"What's wrong now?" I asked.

"We ran out of the ravioli pasta." I looked at her like she was crazy.

"Well, order some more," I said in a DUH tone. The look she gave me said I didn't want to hear what was coming next. I braced myself for it.

"The company credit card was declined," she whispered.

"WHAT!" A few patrons turned to see the source of the outburst. She tugged my arm and I followed her back into my office. She turned towards me closing the door behind us.

"I called the credit card company and they told me that the card had been overdrawn by the owner."

"What do you mean 'the owner overdrew'? I sure as hell did NOT overdraw anything! I don't use that card for anything but business and I haven't used it since four days ago. The only other person who has access to my account is…"

I was dumbfounded. Speechless. Stupefied.

I was downright pissed.

"Here, take this and go buy some more pasta. I'll deal with this situation." I handed her my personal credit card, the only one that I solely had access. As she walked out of the door I picked up my cell phone and dialed the credit card company. I was met with an automated recording telling me to call back Monday so I could speak to a rep. I hung up and threw the phone on my desk.

After a few moments of thinking I remembered that I could check all of my accounts online. I opened my laptop hoping that I hadn't completely shut it down last time. Luckily I hadn't so the screen came right up. I went to the bank's webpage and logged in. As I scrolled through the past account transactions I came across something surprising.

"You've got to be freaking kidding me."

My fingers massaged my temples as my chair leaned back. I stared at the ceiling contemplating the situation. All of these charges that I'd had no idea of on the restaurant card. Now the balance is in the red and I had to make up for it.

This was a messed up situation and I planned on dealing with it as soon as I got home

* * *

**A/N: Thanks again for taking the time to read this story. I appreciate everyone who does. Comments let me know what you think.**


	4. Starry Eyed

_I gazed up at the stars as I listened to the crash of the waves. The beach was absolutely beautiful at night and I was here with my favorite person in the world._

"_Thank you, Edward," I said._

"_For what?" he asked. I lifted my head up to look at his face._

"_For bringing me here tonight," I replied. He smiled up at the sky._

"_Thank you for giving me a chance." He looked back down at me._

"_You, my dear friend, are welcome," I teased._

"_Aw, come on. Friend? Now that's a blow to my ego," He joked._

"_But seriously, you didn't have to do any of this." I gestured to the blanket and unrealistic picnic basket. I honestly didn't even know picnic baskets like that even existed outside of Hollywood._

"_Bella, I would take you to the moon if I could. I would give you the world on a silver platter."_

"_Stop, you over exaggerate everything," I said. I could feel my cheeks warming up as I buried my face into his chest._

"_You take everything so lightly. When I say I love you and would give you anything in the world I mean it." _

"_Edward, I honestly don't care what you say. You can tell me anything you want as long as you don't go anywhere." I lifted my head and stared into his eyes._

_He sat up and grabbed both of my hands in his. He held them over his heart and stared right back into my eyes._

"_Do you feel that beat?" he asked, his eyes staring into my soul. "It beats for you. My heart would stop if I ever left you."_

_My heart swelled at his words and his place there deepened considerably. _

"_I love you, Edward."_

"_I love you too, Bella, more than anything. I'm not going anywhere so you're stuck with me."_

"_This is forever?" I questioned._

"_Yes. This is forever and whatever comes after that."_

_We laid back and looked at the stars together in peace. I was comfortable there and anywhere else as long as he was with me and as it stood, he always will be._

_I really hope so._

* * *

I am a peaceful person. I meditate, I do yoga, I do everything I can to stay peaceful. Sometimes it doesn't really work.

My peacefulness ends when I'm pissed off and my biggest pet peeve is being lied to. I walked up to my home's front door with a license to kill at 1:35 am.

The dark green front door creaked softly as I opened it. I hung my keys up on their rung of the key hooks in the entryway. I put my coat up in the front hall closet and left my shoes on the mat by the door. I walked through the house flipping lights on as I went. I had the house all to myself since Jake wasn't home yet and the twins were spending the night at Em and Rose's. Thus I was left to my own devices with even more time to contemplate the situation at hand.

The red light was beeping on the phone showing I had 5 missed calls and 3 voicemails. As I scrolled through the call history, I found that all of them were from Alice. I hadn't seen her in a few weeks since we had our last fight. It became apparent shortly after Edward left that we had quite a few opposing views. The most recent argument was only because of the bull crap pageant she wanted to put my daughters in.

The online statement showed that there were several separate purchases at various department stores and clothing shops. My mind was racing about it. I obviously hadn't made the charges and I was absolutely livid because the only other person with access to the card was Jake. I'd had complete trust in him with my account information. Now I sit here in my living room knowing that someone, Jake, had used my restaurant's business card to buy things and to top it all off- he'd driven the balance into the red.

To say my trust in him was waning was putting it mildly.

I decided to busy myself instead of dwell on the situation. I figured this was the perfect time to get ahead in my house cleaning as it had been slowly declining over the past few months. I picked up all of the toys and threw them in their toy box. I lined up all of our shoes in the front hall closet and arranged those we wore most frequently along the wall on a mat. I cleaned up all of the crayons and random papers throughout the living room and swept the floor. I ended my night cleanse in the kitchen by doing the dishes and moping the floor.

Some might ask why I would do so much cleaning so late. My only response is that I'm a night owl. I have been since I was 15 and I don't see it changing anytime soon. Between late hours at the restaurant and being there at 6 for the morning delivery I don't see any reason to go to sleep at night. I get my shut eye in the morning and Jake drops the girls off at daycare everyday leaving me to sleep through the morning until I have to pick them up at 4:30.

It was only 2:10 as I plopped on the couch to look at television. I'd planned on catching up on shows I'd been taping but when the t.v. and the cable box came on, I found they been wiped out completely by Yo Gabba Gabba, Dora, and an assortment of the girls' other shows. So much for that.

I began flipping through channels to find mostly old, crappy sitcom reruns and infomercials. I came across a movie channel and tried to focus on it. Turns out, it was really dumb. Something about a girl moving to some one-horse, rainy town and falling in love with a vampire. Honestly, I thought it was bullshit and I laughed hysterically when I realized that this was the movie everyone gets so hyped up about. These are the things that make me believe society is stupid.

Humans falling in love with vampires. Hilarious but utter bullshit. RPattz should stick to movies like Remember Me. That was good, so good I cried at the end. This twilight crap is just ridculous.

I couldn't take anymore after the first 30 minutes and decided to find something on Netflix. I settled for a movie and fell into a trance with my thoughts in the forefront of my mind and the characters flashing on the screen in the back. That's the closest I got sleep.

…

I left the house around 5:30 for the morning shipment. It was a bit nippier outside that yesterday so I opted for a heavier jacket.

I was a little put off because Jake never came home last night. God knows it wasn't the first time but in light of recent events and accusations I had to wonder.

As I pulled out of the driveway I used the Bluetooth to call his cell phone. It went straight to voicemail. Things were definitely not looking good for him right now.

When I pulled into the restaurants parking lot I sat in my parking space for a while. Before I turned off the car I tried Jakes cell again. The phone rang this time so I knew it was on but he still did not answer. I turned the car off and yanked the keys out of the ignition in frustration.

My mind was racing as I walked through the restaurant to my office. I barely stopped moving as I walked through and grabbed the inventory checklist off of my desk. I was propping the back door open just as Mike and Tyler pulled up with my delivery. When they were finished wheeling everything into the storage room Tyler bid his goodbyes and jumped in the truck, Mike however, had to get in his daily flirt. He inched closer as I finished checking everything off of my inventory list.

He had been flirting with me since he started doing his grandpa's deliveries a few months ago. His grandfather had suffered a stroke and since Mike's dad was running a business in New York, Mike got sent here to take care of him and all of his deliveries. If you're wondering how I know this, Mike has a bit of a motor mouth. The first day he brought my delivery his deep New York accent drove me crazy and I thought he'd never leave. Of course today would be no different.

"So, beautiful, are ya ready fa me ta take youse out fa some drinks?" he said with a sly smirk.

"Is that the crack of the day?" I responded with an eye roll.

"Is dat a yes or a no?"

"You are a persistent man, huh?"

"Persistence pays off."

"Well not today it doesn't. Now, I have work to do. Don't you?" I smiled.

"Eh, it's always worth a try," He said shaking his head and handing me his tablet to sign.

"If you say so, Mike." I took it and the stylus and scrolled through to make sure everything was accounted for.

"How's the mister these days?" he asked.

"He's uh…" I trailed off shaking my head.

"Troubles at home gorgeous?" He looked as though he honestly cared. I looked at him for a second before I turned my attention back to the tablet.

"It's… nothing." I scribbled across the screen to sign.

"Well, if ya ever wanna talk, that offa fa drinks is still open." He winked at me, taking the tablet and stylus back.

"Whatever you say Mikey."

"See look, youse already gots a baby name fa me. How sweet." He playfully puckered his lips. "How's bout a kiss?"

I touched my fist to his lips in a mock punch. He pulled back threw his hand over his heart dramatically.

"Miss Bella, miss Bella. How could ya do that to me?"

"A kiss with a fist is better than none," I said, laughing quietly to myself.

"Ain't that a song?"

"Yup. Florence and the Machine," I said.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. My sistah's obsessed wit em." He shook his head.

"We have something in common then. My sister-in-law has them as her ringtone, her call tone, her alarm, etcetera etcetera."

"Wow." He said sarcastically as Tyler stuck his head out of the window.

"Hey, Mike. Quit flirtin' and let's go! Bella'll be here tomorrow and the next day! We got work to do!" He yelled out of the trucks cab.

"Well, Sweets, duty calls." He turned and ran back to the drivers side.

"Bye, Mike." I waved.

"See ya tamorrow toots!" he yelled over his shoulder. I laughed as the truck pulled off and I shut the door. Suddenly I was left with stacks of pasta, crates upon crates of fruit, an unbelievable amount meat, and my thoughts. I began the process of storing the food where it belonged, moving much slower than usual to keep myself busy.

The stars must have been aligning because I could feel a storm coming and I didn't know how to prepare. This wasn't going to be a rain or thunder storm. This was going to be a storm of totally different proportions. Suddenly, I knew this storm wasn't just going to be about Jake's infidelity. I could feel another curveball coming.

Call me psychic, but I knew something serious was about to go down. And it was going to be soon.

* * *

**A/N: I want to thank anyone who reads this story and tell you that I appreciate you. It is an awesome feeling to know that someone is listening to what you have to say and and even better feeling to know that you like it. Please comment so that I know what you think I did right, what I need to fix, or anything to tell me what you're thinking. kikichugirl and Melodramatic Destiny are currently at the top of my favorite people list for their reviews.**

**I also want to point out that even though I don't mention her every time I post, my own Princess Moon Shadow is behind this thing and she gives me some inspiration from time to time and keeps me going. **

**Finally, my heart and soul goes out to everyone in Aurora, Colorado and anyone who has been affected by the massacre. I know it effected more than just colorado because people from my hometown all the way in Ohio were there. I'm sorry to any and everyone who has ever lost a loved one to a heineous act such as this one. My condolences.**


	5. New Revelations

**New Revelations**

"_3…2…1…HAPPY NEW YEARS!"_

"_Happy New Year's, Babe!" I yelled over the music._

_Edward didn't reply, instead pulling me close and crashing his lips to mine. My hands made their way to their favorite place at the back of his head. He pulled away for a second to catch his breath and attacked me again, sucking on my bottom lip. The sensation was unbelievable._

"_Aw… look at the happy-burp- fucking couple. You two are-burp-so cute!" Alice slurred as she stumbled into us._

_What a way to end the moment._

_Edward pulled away slightly to look at Alice. "I think you've had way too much to drink, Allie."_

"_I have-burp-not! I can drink as-burp-much as I fucking want!" she was waving her arms in the air accentuating her drunken stupor. I turned at caught her just as she lost her balance. Her head lolled back and she laughed, the smell of vodka assaulting my nose._

"_Edward's right. You need to go home."_

"_Pfft. Bella, Bella, Bella," she breathed into my face. I helped her into a nearby chair and held up her shoulders as she began to slump to the side. I turned back to Edward and saw the amused look on his face._

"_Whatever is so funny, forget it for now. She needs to get home."_

"_I'll call mom," he said still smiling as he pulled out his cell phone. He dialed his home phone number and listened for a while. A frown appeared on his face. "No one's answering."_

"_Well let's call her a cab."_

_We sat on the Cheneys' porch while we waited for her cab to come. It was pretty cold outside so we sat close together, Edward and I snuggling. Alice was still dumb drunk and was counting stars as the cab pulled up. _

"_Bellaaaaaa," she sang looking down from the sky._

"_Yes Ali?"_

"_I love you. You know that right?"_

"_Yes Ali." I smiled._

"_I'm gonna go pay the cab," Edward said walking away._

"_You make my brother a-burp- better person." She said as I tried to help her up. I wrapped my arm around her waist and hoisted her up. Head lolled back onto my shoulder for her to look at me when we started walking. "Please hold onto him."_

_I froze for a second to look at her. She was shitfaced drunk and incomprehensible but something in her tone was dead serious._

"_Promise me," she slurred. We reached Edward and I helped her into the cab. Just as I was about to close the door she grabbed my arm and stared helplessly into my eyes. "Promise me."_

_Edward had started to walk back to the party but stopped just out of earshot to wait for me._

"_I promise." She smiled and sank into the seat. I smiled back as I closed the door and the cab pulled off._

_After helping her in, we went back into the party._

_We were having fun dancing when Edward suddenly froze in his place. He was staring at something over my shoulder but when I turned to look I couldn't see what it was._

"_Bella, I think it's time to go." He grabbed me by the elbow and towed me out to the front of the house. I stopped him and he spun around with an urgent look on his face._

"_What is it?" When he didn't respond I folded my arms in defiance. "What the hell's up, Edward?"_

"_Bella, if you trust me, then you'll come with me right now."_

_I stared at him for a few minutes before I started walking to the car. As we were pulling off I looked out the back window and saw a brunette woman standing there. She couldn't have been much older than me, maybe 21 or 22, and she had brilliant green eyes. She watched us closely as we pulled off with her arms folded in what I assume was frustration._

"_Edward… who is she?" I turned to look at him._

"_She's no one. Just trust me." He grabbed my hand over the center console and intertwined my hand with his. He kissed the back of my hand. "Just trust me," he repeated more to himself than me._

_Of course I trusted him, he was everything to me. I might have had my doubts but I knew he would never lie to me._

_Even so, the brunette still bugged me. Her expression and flustered appearance were imprinted into my mind._

_Who is that woman?_

_He was distant for some time after New Year's Day._

* * *

"Bella… Bellaaaaa" I felt someone shaking my shoulder. My eyes snapped open and I saw Tori smiling in my face.

"Fell asleep during inventory again?"

"I guess so." I stretched until I heard my muscles crack and stood up shaking my head. I looked around my office. "What time is it?"

"Almost two," she said as she walked out of the door. She stopped in the doorway and turned to face me. "I'm gonna go and start picking out specials for today. You wanna help?"

I had a phone call to make.

"No. You can do it without me. I have a few things to do in here before I can go get the girls."

"It's Saturday. Aren't they with Jake?" she asked with a puzzled expression. She knew so much about my life. She knew and had met most of my family and the girls absolutely loved her. She was so much more that my assistant and sous chef, she was my friend.

"Um… no. They spent the night with Emmett."

"Is everything alright?" she tilted her head to the side and looked me in the eyes.

"Yeah. Everything's okay." I smiled back at her. She looked hesitant, knowing there was something I wasn't telling her. I raised my right hand and put up the three finger Girl Scout sign. "Scout's honor."

She laughed at my mocking tone and walked out the door. As soon as the office door was secure I started my computer up. It was still on the same webpage as I'd left it on last night. The account statement still had the unknown charges staring back at me. I picked up my phone and dialed Jake's cell number again.

"Hello?" he answered after two rings.

"Hey Jake."

"Oh, Bells. Hey."

"Just calling to see how your night was…you know… since you never came home." There was a shuffling noise in the background.

"Bella, I had a lot of work to catch up on so I stayed at the office."

"You had that much work?" I was struggling to keep the skepticism out of my tone. It didn't matter though. He still got pissed off.

"I don't need this. I had a stressful night as it is."

"I was only wondering why you didn't even bother to call me."

"Bella… don't start this right now." His tone was clipped. I heard him rustling something in the background. "I need to go, these papers need to be filed and then I can get the girls."

"Isn't that what your secretary is for?" I asked sarcastically.

"Kim had to go home early."

"So you're still at the garage?" my tone must've reflected the disbelief I felt.

"Yes. Now, I need to finish so I can get the girls." His words were rushed because he was in a hurry to get off the phone.

"Don't bother."

"What the hell do mean 'don't bother'?" he snapped.

"The twins are with Emmett and Rosalie."

"Well… I still need to go. I'll talk to you later," he said and hung up. I sat down at my desk and drummed my fingers on the desk. I decided to call and his assistant, Kim, answered the phone.

"Black Grease auto repair, this is Kim. How may I help you?" she answered in her chipper receptionist voice.

"Hey Kim, how are you today?"

"May I ask whom is calling ma'am?"

"It's me, Bella."

"Oh, Mrs. Black," she laughed. "I'm fine and you?"

"I'm great," I lied. "I was just calling for Jake. His dad has been trying to reach him all morning."

"Well, I'm sorry Mrs. Black, but Mr. Black hasn't been here since he left yesterday night."

Oh really?

"He didn't have any cars today?" I asked.

"No. He finished all of them early yesterday so he told Paul to handle any new repairs that come in today."

"You know what? I think this is him calling me on the other line. Thanks anyway," I said.

"No problem Mrs. Black." I ended the call and stared at the phone.

Jake had point blank lied to me. The situation was only getting worse and my trust in him was slimming by the second.

* * *

It was almost eleven and dinner rush was in full force. I was taking a break in my office when the phone rang. I checked the caller ID and saw that it was Alice calling for what must have been the tenth time tonight, all in the last hour. I was having a heck of a battle with myself.

I couldn't decide whether or not I should call her. We'd gotten into a bit of an argument last week because of the crap she kept spewing about how I don't spoil my girls enough causing me to stomp out and slam the door behind me. It may seem really petty but I want her to sweat a bit before she apologizes. She's done it to me SO many times in the past and I think she should know how it feels. Other than that, I really wanted to talk to her simply because I wanted to have girl chat with my Ali.

I really missed her.

I realize how dumb it sounds that I miss her that much after a week but she and I had a tight bond. Angela was my best friend but so was Alice in a completely different way. Angela and I met as clueless, lonely second graders; Alice and I shared a connection to the same person. Angela and I bonded over crayons and coloring books; Alice and I bonded our loss of _him_. Completely different relationships.

Alice was the one person I could really relate to when I was pissed or sad.

I was still looking at the phone when it stopped ringing. As I sat contemplating whether or not I should call her back the ping sounded to alert me of a voicemail.

"_Bella, it's Alice. I'm really sorry for the crap I've been giving you about the twins but I really need you to get over it and be here at my place ASAP. Something serious is happening here and I thought you should be the first to know about it. I'm assuming that you're busy since you haven't answered all night but when you get this message PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE kick your ass into gear and high tail it over here. See you later, bye."_

I sat there and stared at the phone for a while before Tori knocked on the door. She poked her head in and smiled at me.

"Are you busy?" she asked.

"No, what's up?"

"Well… Your friend Alice just called the front desk and said that it was an emergency."

"She did?"

"Yeah. She said that she needed you to come to her place as soon as possible." She stopped for a second and took a few steps closer to my desk. "You can go. Dinner rush will die down soon and I can handle it."

"Tori, you and I both know that I never leave before dinner rush ends."

"I can do it Bella. You know I can. I've done it before."

I exhaled a big breath and scrubbed my face with my hands. "I don't know," I said hesitantly.

"Bella. You hired me because you knew I could take over for you if needed. You have even told me that you think I'm your long lost red-headed sister. Part of my contract is to handle the restaurant in your place, and don't forget you made it."

"Did she really sound like it was urgent?" I questioned.

"Yes!" she said exasperated at trying to convince me to leave.

"Well, fine. I guess I should go see what's up." I got up and gathered my things to leave. Tori practically pushed me out of the door. Before I left the office for my car I stopped at the doorway and turned back to her. "I'm trusting you with my baby here."

"Yea yea yea, I got it. Now leave and let me do my job for once."

With a wave I was off to Alice's house.

The rain outside was ridiculous, even for Seattle. I could barely see the car in front of me and the headlights behind me were practically blurred out. I drove with caution, not giving a flying flip who honked at me for driving slow.

When I finally pulled into Alice's apartment complex parking lot, the rain was dying down to a dull drizzle. She rang me up and I took the three flights slowly. She must have been listening inside because the door flew open before I was five feet away. Her facial expression was distraught and there were tears in her eyes.

"Alice are you okay?" I asked as I ran to her and grabbed her in my arms. Her tears were coming faster than I could wipe them away. "What's wrong?"

She said nothing, instead gesturing me inside. When I didn't move immediately she walked past me and I followed. A wave anxiety hit me out of nowhere before I stepped on the threshold. I paused for a second and continued in.

"Alice, what is it?" I was beginning to get worried. Possibilities were swirling around in my head as to why she was so worked up.

And then my heart stopped. My lungs ceased to work. My brain stopped functioning properly.

I shut down completely when I heard that velvety voice.

"Bella."

* * *

**A/N: Please dont be mad at me for taking so long to update. School has been keeping me busy but I plan to get at least two more chapters out this month. Bear with me please!**

**PS: I know I've said this before but comments truly are the best motivators!**


	6. Skywriting

"_Rosemary! Rosemary!" the little boy was yelling on the screen._

_I was watching my favorite movie with Angela. Little Manhattan. We were completely engrossed in it when I heard a soft rap on the door. I got up to open the door and found Edward standing outside in the freezing cold with the wind blowing snowdrifts behind him. He had a partially blank expression, obviously trying to hide it._

"_Hey, What's up?" I asked him. He looked off into the distance for a split second before answering._

"_Can we talk for a minute?"_

"_Of course."_

"_Come take a walk with me." He gestured for me to follow him. I rushed to put on my coat and boots and started out the door. He clicked his teeth at my disregard for proper winter attire and walked in past me to get my hat, gloves and a scarf, securing them on me before letting me venture outside. _

_Angela was too into the movie to even say goodbye._

_Once we hit the sidewalk I went for his hand. He said nothing as we continued down block after block away from my house. Soon enough, we were walking through the park._

"_What did you want to talk about, Edward?"_

"_Bella…" He took back his hand shoved both of them into his pockets. I wasn't offended, instead taking it as a sign that he needed to warm his hands for a little bit._

"_What is it?" I was curious as to what was bothering him so much._

"_Something has been bothering me for a while and…" I shook my head to edge him on. "Can you sit with me?" He stopped and looked at me._

_I shook my head again as a yes. He stopped walking for a second and looked me in the eyes. He suddenly put his arm around my shoulder and led me to the nearest bench. As we sat down I went for his hand again and held it tightly. I snuggled close to him under his arm as he started to speak._

"_Bella…" He trailed off, running his hand through his hair in frustration. That was one of my favorite things about him, his nervous ticks. He was silent for a moment, staring off into the distance in thought. "Bella, you are… everything to me. I love you so much it hurts sometimes."_

I know the feeling_-I thought as I smiled._

"_I can barely think about life without you…" he paused, nervously twirling a loose strand of my hair._

_Same here. Tell me something I don't know._

"… _But I have to because I'm leaving."_

_My brain was slow to catch up with what he was saying. When it was finally up to speed I sat up and looked at him._

"_What do you mean 'because you're leaving'?" I asked meekly. It had started to snow as we sat on the bench._

"_I'm leaving Forks." He still would not look at me._

"_Where are you going?"_

"_I'm moving to Chicago." _

_If it wasn't the dead of winter there might have been crickets chirping. As it was, you could probably hear a pen drop from across the park._

"_Chicago?"_

_He was still staring off into the distance, I assumed to avoid looking at me. I could barely feel the snowflakes landing on my cheeks as I sat not saying a word. I was stunned silent._

_After a moment, he broke the silence._

"_This is for the best," he said. I sat there and stared at him in awe. "I just need a new start, a clean slate," he continued._

"_Okay," I said after a moment of hesitation._

"_Bella," he finally turned to look at me, "I'm moving to Chicago."_

"_I heard you the first time."_

"_I'm moving to Chicago and I'm not coming back."_

"_I understand what it means to move Edward," I said._

"_Well, do you understand what I'm saying right now?"_

"_I understand that this all has to be some sick joke you're playing on me. I also understand that it's not funny." My tone had an indignant hint to it._

_He stared at me with an almost guilty expression. His eyes held a somber tone in them as he said, "This isn't a joke Bella."_

"_Well you definently aren't serious." He only stared at me with that somber expression. "Are you serious?" I asked in disbelief._

"_Bella… I need this."_

"_You can't be serious." My eyes were beginning to burn and my cheeks were getting hot._

"_Bella, Forks is a dead end for me," he said cracking his knuckles._

"_ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?!" I exclaimed, forcing the few brave birds who never migrate during the winter to scatter from the trees above us. I was on the verge of tears._

_He looked away yet again but didn't seem the slightest bit surprised at my sudden outburst. He apparently also couldn't look me in the face._

"_I told you Bella, it's for the best."_

"_I don't get it. WHAT THE FUCK DOES 'FOR THE BEST' MEAN?" I could feel the subtle burn of the tears forming in my eyes as I yelled._

"_It means that I have better things to do then sit around this one horse town. Forks isn't going to get me anywhere," he said._

"_There's never been anything here, Edward. Why does it matter all of a sudden?" My bottom lip was quivering._

"_It's always mattered. I just realize now that Forks has nothing to offer," His voiced lowered to a whisper and his head dropped. "There's nothing here for me anymore."_

_He said it so low that I almost didn't hear him._

_The snow on my cheeks started to burn. My heart stopped and my breath caught in my throat._

"_I'm nothing to you?" I breathed._

_He glanced at me for a second before refocusing on the tuft of grass in front of him._

"_I no longer have anything here."_

You had me-_I can't help but think as my memories of the time we'd spent together washed over me. It occurred to me that none of that must have mattered to him as it did to me. That thought alone crushed me like a ton of bricks._

_My tears were dried out by fury as I stood up silently and started walking back in the direction I'd come. It was not long before I felt his presence beside me._

"_Bella…please don't be angry."_

_I froze in my tracks and stared at him in disbelief._

"_I promise you. It IS for the best," he pleaded with me. His were frantic as he tried to get me to believe him and he looked as though he might drop to his knees at any moment. If not for the situation transpiring between us I would have thought this was comical. But this situation was really happening, thus cancelling any comical or even remotely positive feelings I had._

_I had no words for him at the moment so I simply continued to stare at him. He was staring deep into my eyes with sadness and a trace of regret. I searched his eyes for something to hold me there but there was nothing. I started walking again. I didn't make it far before I couldn't walk anymore. I was so frustrated that I knew I wouldn't make it far without tripping. Soon I found another bench to sit on._

"_I still love you Bells," he said quietly as he came up beside me._

"_You don't get to call me that." I said in a disgusted tone._

"_Well Bella, I don't care if I have to address you by your first, middle, and last name. I still love you and I always will. That will never change no matter what you think. I don't care what happens, I will always love you." His tone held a sense of passion behind it. I put my head in my hands._

"_Then why are you leaving me?" my voice cracked as I asked through my trembling fingers._

"_I have to do this," he said as he began rubbing my back. "You'll understand one day."_

"_One day," I said under my breath. "When will that day come?" I questioned aloud._

"_Sooner than you think." His phone rang and he stood up. He checked the screen and sighed. "I have to go." He kneeled down to eye-level with me and pulled my hands away from my face. He looked into my eyes for what seemed like the longest time until he found what he wanted. "I love you, Bella. Never forget that." His kissed me softly on the lips before caressing my cheek as my eyes closed. He placed his lips to the top of my head. "I'll see you again sooner than you think."_

_I felt the cold assault me as his presence disappeared. My eyes fluttered open and I watched him stride away from me. He didn't even look back. I continued to stare in that direction as the snow fell around me._

_I was frozen in time. I was stunned. I was alone._

_Everything suddenly felt empty. The snow got colder and I was already missing his warmth._

_The entire conversation ran through my head over and over again until it was practically engraved into my thoughts. I stood up and began to walk the trail that led around the park hoping to calm myself down. In my utter frustration I stumbled along, tripping over rocks and cracked cement, and slipping on ice until I got back to where I started. I stopped for a moment to stare at the bench that had just been a part of a defining moment of my life before starting to walk the trail again. I kept stumbling around for what seemed like hours until my feet hurt and my butt was sore from falling on it so much. I eventually ended up on the same bench that started this whole mess._

_I was numb and yet the snow still falling on my face was burning now. That should have been a sign for me to get home I chose not to. Instead I slumped over sideways on the bench until I was lying down with my face against the wood. It stung but I didn't care._

_Not long after that it truly hit me._

_As I lay there on the bench I felt a sudden pain in my chest. I sat up and gripped my sides as my breathing became uneven. The tears came rushing down my face again as the sobs racked my body. My face was even colder now because of the tears and they began to freeze on my face. Yet, I still did not move._

_I sat on that bench in a haze, reliving the past hour in my head. After that I relived every moment Edward and I had spent together since that fateful day we'd met in 8__th__ grade. I did so until every memory was engraved in my brain and then I did it again._

…

_The Forks air was freezing me to the bone as I sat on that park bench. I had been sitting there alone for hours staring at the pond. I was clenching my sides in an attempt to hold myself together and every few minutes I began to hyperventilate and sob again._

_It was in that condition that Emmett found me a few moments later._

"_BELLA!" He yelled, sounding relieved. He ran over and grabbed my shoulders. "We've been looking for you for hours. Angie said you ran off with Edward during a movie and didn't come back. You better not ever do that agai-" he stopped when he noticed my expression._

"_Bells, are you okay?"_

_I expression was blank as I continued to stare at the pond._

"_Bella what happened?"_

_My expression remained blank as I turned to look in his eyes._

"_He left."_

"_What are you talking about?" Emmett asked looking worried._

"_He left me here, Emmy. He told me he was leaving and-" I choked up and began to cry._

"_Who? Jake?"_

"_Edward," I said as my sobs began to rake through my body. Emmett immediately put his arms around me and hugged me. He pulled me into his lap and we sat like that for a while without saying anything._

"_He walked away from me Emmy. He said he would never leave me and he did," I said once I'd calmed down. "He left me Emmy Bear."_

_Emmett said nothing as he picked me up off the bench and carried me away._

"_Everything's gonna be okay Belly. I promise it will." He held me close to his chest as he kissed the top of my head. He buckled me into his jeep and drove home. _

_As he carried me into the house I heard dad run out to greet us with a group of other men from the Res, some of his fellow policemen, and a plethora of other people including Mr. and Mrs. Cullen. Alice was even standing close to the porch. As soon as I saw them the sobs started again. Emmett hugged me closer to his chest and pushed his way through the crowd. He told everyone that I was fine and that they could go home but most of them did not comply. They followed dad into the foyer and Emmett decided to take me upstairs to my room. He sat me on the bed and sat next to me. _

_I expected him to question me about what happened but instead he just played his role as the older brother and was just there for me. He sat with his back against my headboard and gestured for me to come to him. I crawled across the bed and sat on his lap as he pulled me into his comforting embrace. He didn't mind that I was probably ruining his favorite sweatshirt with my saltwater tears. He didn't care that he was dealing with my emotions, something Emmett tended to avoid at all cost. All that mattered to him was me._

_Upon realizing this, my sobbing got worse. It had only reminded me of the person who wouldn't be there to hold me like this anymore._

_I was lost in the realization that Edward had walked away from me and wasn't coming back._

_He wasn't coming back. Not even for me._

* * *

**A/N: Hello there you lovely people! you can shoot me if you want for not posting in forever but then you wouldn't get the rest of the story now would you? Exactly. I would like to thank my beta Princess Moon Shadow for beta'ing for me. I have officially learned my lesson and have no idea when i get the chance to post next but please still take the time to review and let me know what you think. Happy holidays!**


	7. The Pain With No Name

"_Alice, what is it?" I was beginning to get worried. Possibilities were swirling around in my head as to why she was so worked up._

_And then my heart stopped. My lungs ceased to work. My brain stopped functioning properly._

_I shut down completely when I heard that velvety voice._

"_Bella."_

"Edward," I breathed. I was stunned. I was frozen in the doorway. The room was silent except for the rain pattering away outside the window.

After what seem like eternity but in reality was probably 5 minutes, Alice walked over to the couch and began to sob quietly, wrapping her arms around herself for support.

I was still frozen staring at him when I heard her and I suddenly remembered that I was still in the doorway and the door was wide open. Upon this realization I broke eye contact with him. I closed the door and put on the deadbolt before walking over to sit next to Alice. I began to rub her back to soothe her before giving up and pulling her into a hug. The room was still silent.

I looked up to where he was still frozen standing in front of the dining table chair he'd probably knocked over jumping up when I came in. He had a distant look on his face as he stared back at me, as though he was recalling a memory. I kept rubbing Alice's back until she broke the hug and pulled away, all the while my eyes stayed locked with his. She wiped her face and quieted herself before turning to me.

"Bella."

I didn't respond to her instead keeping up the staring game between him and I. I'm not sure what facial expression I had but it apparently wasn't a good one because of the way she was looking at me.

"Bella, calm down," Alice chided as she began rubbing her hand up and down my arm to calm me down.

It was then that I realized my facial expression. It was somewhere between contempt and pure anger, possibly a mix of both.

"I'm fine, Alice." My malicious tone betrayed me as I responded to her, finally breaking eye contact with him again. I looked at her directly and added, "Just wondering what the fuck is going on."

She averted her eyes to a corner of the room and I followed her gaze. There next to her coffee table were three suitcases and a duffle bag.

"What is that?" I ask staring holes into the fabric on the bags.

"He says he's staying," Alice says quietly.

Her voice immediately takes me back to the night after he left.

* * *

_I was curled into a tight ball against the headboard of my bed when I heard a knock at the bedroom door. I didn't move, flinch, or even turn my eyes from the small patch of fabric I was focused on, instead just sitting on top of my down comforter. My eyes were still swollen from my constant crying and I hadn't eaten all day. I probably smelled horrible, seeing as I hadn't showered since yesterday…before it happened._

_When whoever was knocking on my door got tired of waiting they cracked it open and peeked inside._

"_Is it okay for me to come in, Sweetie?" I heard my dad's voice. "Alice is here to see you."_

_I still didn't respond. I was too busy with my thoughts and analyzing every fiber of frayed edge of the handmade quilt on my bed._

_After another moment of silence, dad started to come in. The door creaked as he opened it._

"_Honey, Alice wants to talk to you." The awkward silence continued. I had currently graduated from the frayed edge of the quilt to the ripped fibers in the center of it._

"_I'm going to go downstairs so that you two can have some alone time," he said as he grunted. "I'll be in the living room. Call me if you need anything, Bella." He slowly shuffled down the hallway and down the stairs. Alice and I were still frozen when we heard the sound of some sports game wafting up the staircase._

"_Bella…" Her voice was soft and timid. Quite the opposite of the rambunctious drunk she'd been at the New Year's party._

"_Bella…" She chided. I continued to stare at the ripped quilt without saying a word._

"_Bella… I'm sorry," My head popped up to look at her just as the first tear rolled down her cheek. "I should have known something was up and tried to stop him. I should have-" She couldn't finish getting the words out before her body began shaking violently with sobs._

_I snapped out of my trance as the first sob overtook her. I jumped up from the bed and ran over to hug her._

"_It was her. It was the girl." I pulled back to look her in the face in surprise. She was shaking her head as the tears fell. "I'm so s-s-sorry Bella."_

_I pulled her back into the hug and squeezed her shoulders tightly._

"_I just never thought my big brother would leave me like that," she blubbered into my shoulder. "He always said that he would take me with him when he got out of this place."_

_I rubbed her back as I thought something along the same lines._

_He said he wouldn't leave me either Alice. He lied to both of us._

* * *

Alice starts to wring imaginary water out of her shirt.

My silence is apparently deafening as it isn't long before he speaks up.

"I'm sorry." His voice is strong and confident but his volume is pretty low.

"What did you just say?" I ask as my head whips toward him in disbelief.

"Bella, I know I left without the best of goodbyes but I want to make it better. I want to right my wrongs that I made all those years ago. I want you to forgive me because I'm not going anywhere. I'm here to stay this time."

I still sat on the couch in silence. Both of the Cullens were staring at me intently waiting for a response.

"Say something, Bella. Please."

I had a large breath intake before I stood up and marched over to him and got in his face. He was substantially taller than me which made 'in his face' the equivalent of my face to his chest. Even so, he stepped back from my sudden approach.

"What, you don't want to be near me now?" He cringed at my words. "Oh wait, I forgot. I'm nothing to you."

"Bella, I-" He started apologetically, but I wasn't hearing it.

"NO! You don't get to show up and do this shit. It's not going to happen like that. You think that you can just show up and say you're staying? That you're not going anywhere? NEWSFLASH DAMMIT: YOU. ARE THE ONE. WHO LEFT! No one held a gun to your fucking head and told you to leave. You chose to leave on your own."

"Bella-" he tried.

"Shut the fuck up _Edward_." He flinched as his name rolled of my tongue in disgust. "You may have Alice fooled by this shit you're spewing about trying to get forgiveness and righting your wrongs but not me. It killed me when you left." He turned his head away. I grabbed his chin and turned his face back in my direction. "Look at me. You left me sitting on a bench. In the fucking park. DO YOU UNDERSTAND HOW FUCKED UP THAT IS?"

My eyes were burning from the tears soon to follow my tirade. He nodded his head in silent agreement before I continued.

"I was mentally fucked up after that for months. I sat in my room and stared at the walls instead of sleeping or eating or doing anything normal for that fucking matter. I was an insomniac because of how fucked up you left me. And do you want to know what the worst part of all of it was?" He stayed silent as he looked away again. "LOOK AT ME DAMMIT!" I yelled into his face as I grab his chin and yank back to face me. "The worst part of all of this was watching your sister," I jabbed my finger towards Alice, "that girl right there, fall apart. I watched her deteriorate right in front of my eyes because her big brother," I jabbed my finger into his chest and pushed him back a little, "her idol… left her behind and wouldn't speak to her. She was clinically depressed because of you," I hissed, jabbing my finger into his chest once more for emphasis.

"And what do you have to say for it, _Edward_? Not a damn thing. I'm not sure if you're just delusional or if someone has been feeding you a ton of shit about retribution but it's not happening here. Not after you left us wading in the middle of the fucking river without so much as a paddle or even a stick. Why don't you take your 'sorry's to someone who gives a flying fuck because I sure don't. I have come to learn that you're nothing but full of shit, lies, and broken promises.

"I've come to learn that I can't trust you."

I turned around to Alice and saw the surprise written across her face in bold print. She was stunned that I had just gone off like that. Outbursts like that didn't come from me very often… as a matter of fact, I'm sure I'd never blown up like that.

I inhaled a long, deep breath and held it for a moment before exhaling. After a few more deep breaths I walked back over to the couch and sat down, closing my eyes.

The room was dead silent for the longest period of time before anyone even moved. Alice shifted in her spot on the couch to be closer to me. Afterwards the awkward silence continued for yet another agonizingly long period of time.

"Do you know where you're staying tonight Edward?" Alice said, breaking the silence.

"Um… I uh…" he was obviously still dumbfounded from my outburst. He was staring at a wall off to the side.

"Speak English dammit." I hissed. I was still worked up as though the deep breathing had done nothing to calm me down.

"Um, no. I don't know where I'm staying tonight. I kind of just came here without a plan." He ran his hand through his disheveled hair and cracked his knuckles in frustration just as he had all those years ago. Chicago hadn't changed his habits. At all.

The awkward silence was back as I stared daggers at the side of his face.

"Well… you can stay here tonight," Alice said after clearing her throat.

I broke my chain of daggers as my head whipped to her direction.

"What?" I hissed.

"He's staying here tonight."

"Why?" I questioned, looking at him again. "Why don't you kick him the fuck out where he needs to be?" My tone was extremely bitter as I saw the sheepish expression he had on.

"Bella, I know that you are obviously pissed right now, and you rightfully should be. But he is still my brother. I can't have him out in the cold if I can let him sleep right here."

"I don't see why not," I reply indignantly.

"Bella! Stop acting like this. I completely understand how you feel and I agree with everything you said. But like I already said, he's my brother. He fucked me over big time when he left but that doesn't mean I don't love him anymore." She leaned in closer, "and I know you still love him too," she whispered in my ear. "So don't make him sleep in his car or something like that and catch pneumonia."

I turned my head in the other direction, not wanting to admit she was right. I folded my arms over my chest in stubborn silence.

"Fine, Alice. You do what you want. If you want to let him into your home and fuck shit up again, then by all means, go ahead. But I'm not going to sit here and watch you self-destruct when he leaves again." I got up to gather my things and walked towards the door. I stopped right in front of him and he still wasn't looking at me. I was as close as I could get without touching him. "He fucked up my head once when he left the first time. I'll be damned if I let it happen again." With that I brushed past him and unlocked the door.

The tears began as soon as I was in the hallway with the doors closed behind me but I didn't stop until I got to my car. I sat in the driver's seat and stared out into the rain for a moment while the tears streamed down my face silently. After a few moments, I started the car and began my way to who knows where. As I began sobbing I had to pull over into an empty parking lot. The sobs wracked through my body as I wrapped my arms around myself. I had to hold myself together after what just happened.

Hell. I don't even know what just happened.

* * *

**A/N: Well would you look at this! I actually posted two chapters in the same week! I've been feeling really bad that I have so much time to read Fanfic but never anytime to write it that i whipped out a few chapters of this story during my winter break. Thanks again to those readers who are still here and anyone new who may have tagged along. Also a BIG thanks to my beta Princess Moon Shadow. Don't forget just how much I love hearing what you guys think... so review please. It makes my day in ways you don't understand.**


	8. Cinnamon Waffles

My head was pounding when I opened my eyes. I had that single moment where I forgot about all of the shit going on in my life. It was close to bliss.

And then it hit me like an 18-wheeler semi carrying a ton of bricks.

Jacob was cheating on me, the girls had a shit for a father, and Edward was back.

_Edward was back._ That one realization kept running through my head repeatedly.

At the thought of him my headache immediately got worse. I heard a loud banging in the kitchen and sat up in the bed. I knew Jake wasn't home because – let's be honest, I'm being a realist here - he's never home anymore. I got out of bed and ignored my headache as I slipped into the hallway. I didn't need to go far before I heard a loud clang and an exclamatory "FUCK!"

I relaxed at the sound of my brother's voice as I turned into the kitchen. I laughed at the image of him huddled over picking up a large array of my different colorful pots and pans.

"That stuff is all really expensive, Emmett." He jumped at the sound of my voice and banged his head on an open cabinet door.

"Damn, Bella. Don't sneak up on your big brother like that. Scared the shit out of me," he said rubbing the back of his head where he'd collided with the cabinet. He turned back around to picking the pots and pans up. "What are you doing up anyway? It's like, 4 AM."

"Great question my dear brother," I said sarcastically, "but the more important question here: What are you doing in my kitchen at 4 AM?" I looked at him waiting for a response.

"Well…" he said turning around to face me. "Alice called and said that you were really upset when you left her house. She didn't say why but she said that someone should check on you and make sure you were doing alright."

I counted for a moment in my head before replying, "I left her house at like 12… 4 hours ago. So why are you just now here?"

"Rose and I were a little…um…" he coughed, "otherwise occupied."

"YOU WERE WHAT?! MY GIRLS ARE IN THAT HOUSE YOU DUMBASS!" I yelled going in to slap the shit out of him. He knew me well though, and ducked at the last second.

"Dad came and picked them up Bells yesterday afternoon… calm down, calm down!" He said throwing his hands up to block me. I stopped and crossed my arms over my chest.

I shook my head in response. "Well, I'm fine. So you can leave."

"Are you sure?" He asked skeptically.

"Yes, Emmett. Now go and I'll call dad in the morning." I knew I could only lie to him for so long before I broke down and told him everything. But I wasn't ready just yet. I started to push on him in an attempt to get him out but of course, his size made my efforts futile. He pulled back to get a good look at me.

"I don't believe you Belly. We both know that you're a horrible liar," He dipped his head closer to my level. I could see the sympathy in his eyes and it was only pissing me off… I hate pity.

"Leave."

"You and I both know that I'm not going anywhere, Bella." I huffed in response. My stubbornness runs deep but my façade was falling and I knew it. "Now will you tell me what's wrong? Cuz I'm not leaving until you do."

"Fine, you can stay but I'm going back to bed," I said waving him off and turning around. I didn't wait for a response and instead walked back into my room and shut the door behind me. I collapsed into my bed. Not seconds after my face hit the down comforter I wrapped my arms around myself and began crying.

"See," Emmett said as I felt the bed dip beside me, "I know when my little sister isn't okay. Now will you just tell me what's wrong, Belly?"

I crumbled at the sound of his childhood nickname for me.

And then I told him everything that was on my mind- Jacob, Edward, the girls. Everything.

I guess Emmett and I had fallen asleep as we talked. He was currently sprawled across my California King sized bed and I was curled up close to his side. My head was resting on his arm and I could feel the slow vibrations of his snores from my position snuggled into his side. My cell was rattling the bedside table loudly; in hindsight, that was most likely what had awakened me.

When I reached over to pick it up I noticed that the caller ID read Charlie. My dad's burly voice was on the other end of the line as I answered.

"Hey, dad."

"Hey, Bells. I was just calling to see what time you wanted me to drop of the girls. I have a hot date with Sue tonight."

I laughed into the phone.

"You can bring them over now if you want. I was just about to get up and fix something to eat," I said sitting up.

"If you say so. I'll be there in a little bit." Just as he was hanging up I heard Allie in the background screaming about her favorite show, Yo Gabba Gabba.

I was sitting on the edge of my bed trying to motivate myself to get up when I heard a groan behind me.

"Is it morning yet?" Emmett said in a groggy voice rubbing his eyes.

I said nothing and laughed to myself as I got up and left the room. I was in the kitchen putting up the rest of the pots and pans Emmett had missed earlier. I was just shutting the cabinet when he stumbled in and sat on a bar stool.

"What do you want for breakfast?" I asked him leaning against the counter on my elbows.

"Edward and Jacob's asses on a plate," he said glaring at me.

"Emmett… Let it go." I sighed.

"No! I can't let it the fuck go! This kid is cheating on you… and then Edward- the guy who left you in pieces that I was there to pick up- shows up thinking shit can go back to being the same." He stopped and shook his head. "This is not something I'm just gonna let go of, Bella."

"I can handle it." I gritted my teeth in anger.

"Oh yes. Because you handled it SO well last time." I knew his tone was meant to be sarcastic but I couldn't help but feel a tad hurt. I didn't respond and instead started pulling out everything I needed to start making waffles. I didn't even hear Emmett get up and walk around the Island until he was hugging me, his voice in my ear.

"You know I didn't mean it like that, Belly."

"Yeah. I know," I said into his chest. After a minute or two just standing in his warm embrace I wriggled free and went back to what I was doing. He sat back on his stool with my iPad and started playing Angry Birds. We worked in comfortable silence until there was a knock at the door. Emmett went to answer it.

Under normal circumstances it would have pissed me off that he was opening my door like he owned the place but at the time I just let my brother go, absorbed in my own thoughts. I was so absorbed that I almost didn't notice the two sets of tiny little arms wrap around my legs.

"Mommy! Mommy! Mommy!" Alison yelled at the top of her lungs. Her vice grip on my legs was only reinforced when Jaspen squeezed me.

"We misseded you mommy," she said in a much more subdued tone than her sister. I put down the bowl I was stirring and my whisk to pat their heads.

"Did you have fun while you were gone?"

"Yeth but we mitheded you," Allie said with her adorable lisp. I bent down to pick both of them up. It was pretty difficult because they weren't babies anymore but I managed.

"Well, mommy had some things to do so I needed you to be with someone else for a while."

"But mommy ith been…" Allie held up her hand and started to count out her fingers. She settled with three chubby little fingers and put them up to my face. "… Two dayth!" she exclaimed with her three chubby fingers hovering an inch from my nose.

I sat them both down on the granite countertop of the kitchen island and tilted my head back laughing.

"MOMMY! Thath not funny!" Allie yelled her bottom lip sticking out in a pout. "I mitheded you for two dayth and yous laughing at me!"

"Aw, baby," I said looking back at her with a sorry expression. "I'm not laughing at you."

"Then wath you laughing at?" she asked.

"Don't worry about it baby, but I wasn't laughing at you."

"Mommy… where's daddy?" Jazz asked me.

I swallowed. I really didn't want to open that door yet.

"Um… Daddy has been at work." Dumb answer, I know.

"But mommy, you comes home everyday. Why daddy don't comes home?" Jazz questioned.

Shit.

Emmett had the absolutely perfect timing as he walked through the kitchen booming with laughter with Charlie following closely behind. I saw Charlie's ferret looking mustache twitch with laughter as well. Glad for the distraction I walked over and gave him a hug.

"Hey dad. Thanks for watching the girls for me."

"Don't thank me, Bells. You know I love taking those little angels everywhere," He said walking over to stand in front of the twins. "Did you tell mommy what we did yesterday?" he asked them.

"Mommy! Popth took uth to thee a batheball game!" Allie yelled jumping up and down excitedly.

"Oh really? Did you have fun?" I said. I had that "I'm the mom so I have to act excited" attitude as I walked back over to stand in front of them, I playfully pushed dad to the side. In reality I was trying to come up with an excuse for Jake's absence. I pasted my perfected fake smile on.

"We gots to eat ice cream and cotton candy, mommy!" Jaspen said excitedly. "We gots these too!" She waved her little arm in my face to show me the multiple handmade bracelets.

"Oh, how pretty," I said taking both of their chubby wrists and looking at the bracelets. They were made of simple woven threads with beads on a few of them. They both had many of varying vibrant colors but most of Alison's were shades of green and most of Jaspen's were shades of purple. "Where did you get these?"

"A old lady said they was made just for us and then she gived em to us," Jazz smiled at me.

"Well, wasn't that nice of her. I hope you said thank you." I looked at both of them. They shook their heads up and down fervently. I smiled at them, picking them up and standing them on the floor. I knelt down to their eye level. "I'm about to make breakfast so why don't you go put your things up in your room and it'll be ready when you get done."

"But we ates something at pops's house," Jazz said to me.

"Oh, well," I sighed dramatically, standing up. "I _was_ gonna make your favorite waffles…but if you don't want any I guess I won't make them." I walked towards the counter where everything was set up and pretended to put things away, instead turning on the waffle iron. I'd almost forgotten Emmett and Charlie were there until Emmett spoke up.

"They might not want the waffles, but I sure as hell do!" He guffawed.

"No, mommy, no, no, no! We wants the waffles mommy!" Jaspen said quickly, pulling on my leg. Allie was too busy staring at the counter that held the ingredients of her and Jazz's absolute FAVORITE food. I laughed at both of their reactions.

"Well go put your stuff up and I'll make you some. Now go. You better hurry back before Uncle Emmett eats them all," I said patting their butts to get them moving. They ran out of the kitchen in a hurry.

"They sure love those waffles don't they?" Charlie said with a chuckle.

"Yeah… they are practically obsessed with cinnamon flavored ones." I started pouring the batter into the double waffle iron. I closed the lid and flipped it so they could begin cooking. I turned around to face my brother and father. Their expressions were both unreadable.

We stood in silence for a moment before Emmett walked over to the cabinet and brought out four cups- two glass and two plastic. He then proceeded to pour orange juice into them. He hesitated over pulling out a fifth glass eyeing Charlie.

"You staying for breakfast, old man?" He asked.

"No. I have to get home. Got to get ready for my hot date," Charlie said smiling smugly. He started patting his pockets for his keys.

"It's definitely 11 A.M. dad. What kind of 'Hot Date' do you need to get ready for right now?" I asked as the timer went off on the waffles.

"Don't patronize your old man, Bells," he joked as I plated the waffles. I started to cut them into smaller pieces for the girls. I was just setting them on their miniature table when they ran back out of their room. I caught them before they got to their seats and told them to give pops a kiss bye. They rushed to give him a hug and kiss before running back to the table to eat.

"I'm hurt… they love those waffles more than me," he joked. I laughed and walked him to the door after pouring more batter into the waffle iron. He gave Emmett on of their 'man hugs'- AKA a pat on the back- and pulled me into a tight bear hug. Emmett didn't get his suffocating hugs from nowhere.

He was gone before the timer went off on the waffles again and I was plating them for Emmett. I made my own and we sat in the stools at the island eating in uncomfortable silence. It wasn't long before he started speaking what I'm sure he was dying to say while Charlie was here.

"I just want to know why." His tone told me that he was attempting to tread lightly.

"What?" I said quietly, swallowing a bite of waffle.

"Why now?"

I was spared having to respond by a knock at the front door. I got up to answer it dropping my fork on the plate. I made my way to the door stopping at the girls' table.

They were arguing as always. Jazz wasn't going to finish her waffle but she wouldn't let Allie have it. In true form Allie was throwing a fit because she couldn't get her way. She still hasn't learned that Jaspen may be the one person in the world who can say no to her. Jazz was too smart not to see through Allie's games unlike everyone else, myself included most of the time.

My little diva and my little genius.

"Girls… stop arguing and finish eating," I said in a warning tone.

"I AM done mommy! I juth wanna finith that one!" Allie yelled exasperated, pointing at the leftover pieces on Jaspen's plate.

"Its mines and don't wants her to have it! She eated all hers!" Jaspen said.

"Well settle it or you both are going in time out." I laughed as I walked towards the door. Just as I was about to open it I heard crying and Emmett trying to diffuse the situation.

"You better not be arguing," I said pulling the door open. "If I come in there and that's why one of you is crying you are BOTH going into time out!"

I wasn't even paying attention to who was on the other side of the door until I turned around fully.

He was so close I smelled him before I saw him.

Twice in twenty four hours I was caught off guard by Edward.

* * *

**A/N: Hello there! Thanks again for reading my story. Muchas gracias to my betas Princess Moon Shadow and Melodramatic Destiny. Next chapter is in the works.**

**Don't forget to tell me what you think!**


	9. Mud Baths

"_You better not be arguing," I said pulling the door open. "If I come in there and that's why I hear crying then you are BOTH going into time out!"_

_I wasn't even paying attention to who was on the other side of the door until I turned around to fully face him._

_He was so close, I smelled him before I saw him._

_Twice in twenty four hours I was caught off guard by Edward._

This time was worse than the first. I have no idea where the balls were that I had to cuss him out last night were. Unfortunately they were M.I.A.

Edward was standing before me in the same clothes he'd been wearing the night before. He appeared as though he hadn't slept a wink since I'd last seen him as he had noticeable bags under his eyes. His expression was solemn.

"Bella," he said in an awkward greeting. I said nothing in response, instead folding my arms across my chest in defiance. He took that as his cue to keep talking. "I just came to apologize to you thoroughly about last night," he rushed. "That was most certainly not how I planned for us to see each other again," he finished quietly.

I was frozen in the door when I heard the pitter patter of little feet. In hindsight, I should have been reprimanding the girls for running through the house, but my mind was occupied.

Actually it was blank. I was dumbfounded.

I had never expected him to come knocking on my door. I was sure that I'd told him off so badly last night that he'd never want to see me again. I was wrong. I'd forgotten how persistent he'd always been.

I was so occupied in my thoughts that I was in another world. Edward shuffling on his feet back in forth did not escape my notice, but I paid it no attention. I knew he was uncomfortable, but that was the last thing I was worried about.

We continued to stand in awkward silence until he looked over my shoulder suddenly. His expression darkened and his entire composure changed. His shoulders hunched forward slightly as though he was bracing himself. I almost didn't notice Emmett walk up behind me.

"Bella, the girls are getting a little antsy. I think we should take them outside," he said in a sing-song voice. He was coming closer but not paying any attention to the door yet. My head whipped to his direction as he broke me from my reverie. Something in my expression must have alarmed him because I could see him shift back into brother bear mode. One look at the open doorway and his nostrils were flaring.

"What the hell is he doing here?" I could tell from his shifted stance that he was livid and on the defense.

"Emmett." My tone held a warning.

"Don't 'Emmett' me!" he said still not looking at me. He started walking towards the door with and evil glint in his eyes. I could see Edward take a few steps away from the door in my peripheral vision. Good thinking on his part. Emmett was still stalking towards the door as I went to stop him. I barely slowed him down as I pushed back on his chest. It took all of my strength to make him pause, though he still did not take his eyes off of Edward.

"What the fuck, Bella?" Emmett yelled.

"Emmett," I said in a warning tone, "The girls are here. Watch your mouth." We could still hear the girls running around the house.

"Sorry," he said quietly. He snapped out of his trance, finally looking down at me. "But still, what the hell is he doing here?"

My hands dropped to my sides and I took a step back. I averted my eyes to the row dirty shoes by the door. He stepped towards me again and put a hand on my arm.

"Bella, what the fuck is he doing here?" He whispered, his other hand gesturing towards the still open doorway where Edward was standing.

I was speechless. I stood there in the silence trying to come up with an explanation. I was just about to say something when Edward spoke.

"I came to apologize." His voice was solid, yet still it was almost a whisper. Both Emmett and I looked in his direction at the sound of it. Emmett snapped back into his trance and started to slowly move close to the door again. I knew he wasn't going to harm Edward, only because the girls were here, so I let him advance. He didn't stop until he was in the doorway, right in front of Edward and towering over him. Edward held his own and barely shifted his stance.

"You're a little late aren't you?" Emmett said in a snide, sarcastic voice.

"It's never too late for an apology," Edward replied looking right into Emmett's eyes.

"Well, you're wrong," Emmett whispered, staring him down, "You are not going to come back into her life just to fuck it up again. I won't let you."

"I'm not trying to come back in to her life like that. If she never wants to see me again I'll leave and never come back. It's all her choice." His tone was confident as he stared back at Emmett.

Emmett turned his attention back to me. He waited expectantly for me to kick Edward out. I said nothing.

"Bella," he urged me.

I looked in the direction of the girls. They were still chasing each other around and screaming to boot. I turned back towards Emmett and stared at him.

"Well…" he said expectantly.

"Go check on the girls." My voice was steel.

"But, Bella-" he started to rebut before I cut him off.

"No. Go take the girls outside or something."

"Dammit, Bella! I'm not letting this happen again." He was slowly growing agitated with me.

"Nothing is going to happen, Emmett. We just need to talk."

He stood, glued in place. He wouldn't move and just stared at me. I stepped up to him and tounched his arm.

"I'll be fine Emmy Bear. Just give us a minute," I whispered quietly while lightly tugging on his arm.

He looked at me for a moment more before returning his attention to Edward. He gave him a death glare before growling a low response. He pulled his arm free and went to the girls. I turned back to Edward who was looking at me intently.

We stared at each other as Emmett went to the girls.

We stared at each other as the girls screamed and giggled as he carried them to the backyard.

We stared at each other as the patio door slammed shut behind them.

We just stared at each other in silence.

I had no clue what was running through his head but my thoughts were a jumbled mess.

It was the first time I'd seen him in the daylight since we were eighteen. Six years had not physically changed him much, but there were some very subtle differences.

He was slightly taller than I remembered him and his shoulders were a bit wider. He was still nowhere near Emmett or Jacob's size. His face had hardened and he looked older in a way that had nothing to do with time.

The clock ticked continuously as we stared at each other. The sound was monotonous and seemed unnaturally loud. It was also the only indication of any time passing between us. It was the only thing that separated us.

Tick…

Tick…

Tick…

Tick…

Tick…

That continuous, incessant ticking was the one force tethering us to reality.

I cleared my throat and we both averted our eyes.

"Would you like to come in?" I asked. From my peripheral vision I saw him nod and step over the threshold. I nodded towards the shoe mat besides the door and he promptly removed his sneakers, placing them on the mat. I turned and began to walk towards the kitchen, the path to which had just recently been littered with toys. I kicked them out of the way as I went, not bothering to pick them up yet. I could only barely hear the thump of his feet as he crossed the hardwood behind me.

I reached the kitchen and gestured for him to take a bar stool. He sat down in front of the island and began twiddling his thumbs.

"Would you like something to drink?" I asked in a show of hospitality.

He nodded.

"I have water, soda, juice…" I trailed off staring at the now open fridge.

"Juice, please," came his quiet reply. I almost laughed at his ever present child-like tendencies such as his preference for anything over water. He truly had not changed in the past six years. He laughed as I set an apple juice box down roughly on the island counter in front of him.

He stared at his hands as I began to clean up after our waffle breakfast feast. I started running water and began gathering up our dishes. I wiped down the girls' pink plastic table and chairs before setting them in the corner. I was just putting my hands in the dishwater when he started to speak.

"I'm sorry. For everything," He said quietly. My hands froze in the water for a moment but I said nothing. I waited a moment before I continued washing. It wasn't until I was rinsing off the last of the silverware that he spoke again.

"I really did not mean to hurt you like I did." His voice was still quiet. "I only left because I had some things to deal with."

I let out the water and wiped out the sink, letting the steamy water run.

"Will you say something please?"

I turned off the water and stood with my back to him in silence.

"Please, Bella. Speak to me."

"What do you want me to say, Edward?" I said, his name coming out in more of a sneer.

"I… I… I…" He stuttered. I turned around to fully face him.

"What the fuck do you want me to say?" I yelled, slapping the towel still in my hands against the sink. The noised made him flinch slightly and he looked down at the floor. "I'm pretty sure I said everything I needed to get out last night. There's really nothing left to say."

"I know. I just…I…I miss talking to you." He continued to stare at the mahogany hardwood floors as he stuttered.

"Well. You gave that up on your own accord." My tone was borderline sarcastic.

"I'm sorry. I will never be able to tell you how sorry I am, and I can never make those years apart up to you. But-"

"But what? What's your point?" I cut him off.

"My point is that I'm here now and, although I have no expectations of you forgiving me, I hope to at least attempt to show you just how sorry I am." He said looking straight into my eyes.

It was absolutely silent until there was a knock on the patio door. I turned to see Jaspen covered in mud with clumps of grass on her clothes and in her hair. I would have laughed if not for the tense situation and the fact that she was crying.

"What's wrong honey?" I asked as I slid the door open and kneeled down to her eye level.

"Allie putheded me into the mud!" She yelled as the tears trailed down her cheeks.

"Where was Bear when this happened?" I asked, referring to the nickname the twins had given Emmett.

"I don't know mommy!" She wailed.

"Aw…honey, why don't you go into the bathroom and I'll be there in a second after I deal with Allie. I'm gonna give you a nice warm bath in your favorite strawberry bubble bath." I wiped the tears from her muddy face with the pads of my thumbs.

"Okay mommy," she said as the tears slowed down, "but pleathe don't be too mean to Allie. Thee didn't mean it."

"Okay Jazz. She's in trouble but I won't be too mean to her."

"You promith mommy?" she asked looking up at me suspiciously.

"Pinky promise," I said as I held out my right pinky finger. She took it and turned around, satisfied, to walk slowly to the bathroom. I turned around to see Edward smiling in the direction Jaspen had just walked off in. I stared at him until he returned his attention to me.

"I think it's time for me to go," he said, getting ready to leave. He stood and began walking towards the front door. I was silent as I watched him leave.

Emmett then walked back into the kitchen with an unnaturally quiet Alison following close behind.

* * *

**A/N: I know, I know, believe me when I say, I know. It's been a while. I say anything except that school has been kicking my ass. on the bright side my art has finally been recognized. I won a state and National award for two of my drawings!**

***Pats myself on the back***

**Anyways, Thanks so much for sticking with me on this. I'm unbelievably sorry for the wait and I'm even more sorry to say that it may be a while before I can get more out to you guys. I love all of you for reading and trust me when I say that between my 15 page research papers, 30 minute spanish presentations and calculus... I am still working on this story. Bear with my guys. This is just my 11th grade year. I've got a ways to go in school and with this story!**

**PS: Those email alerts for reviews make my day!**


End file.
